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Streams of Fire
Chapter 1 Skykit raced across the nursery clearing, squealing as Tidekit dashed past her. With a flying leap, the grey she-kit pounced on the leaf. Skykit skidded to a stop, gasping for breath. “Wow, you’re so fast, Tidekit!” she exclaimed. Whitekit and Pinekit padded up to them. “Did Tidekit beat you again?” Pinekit teased. Skykit purred, flicking her tail. “She’s way to fast for me. Wanna race, Pinekit?” “No thanks,” Pinekit laughed. “You’d leave me in the dust!” Tidekit brushed herself off and gave her chest a few licks. “Is it time to eat yet?” “It should be” Whitekit replied. “I’m starving!” “Let’s see if the warriors brought any fresh-kill!” Pinekit mewed, jumping up. The four kits dashed over to the entrance of the clearing, eagerly awaiting the patrol. “Leafblossom!” Skykit squealed. A grey tabby she-cat was leading the patrol. “Wow, you brought loads of prey!” “Look at the size of that rabbit!” Pinekit gaped. “Hey, Tidekit, wanna share it?” Tidekit nodded eagerly. Leafblossom purred. “I’m glad to see you all so enthusiastic,” she mewed. “I’m sure you’ll be great hunters later on. Then it’ll be your turn to feed the kits!” “I can’t wait!” mewed Pinekit, swiping the air with her paw. Tidekit sunk her tiny teeth into the rabbit, tearing off a mouthful. “I’d rather just eat and sleep.” she mewed, her voice muffled. “Don’t talk with your mouth full, Tidekit,” Whitekit scolded. “That’s just rude.” “I’m going to take some to the queens,” announced Skykit, dashing off with a plump mouse in her jaws. The nursery den was warm and smelled of milk. Skykit breathed it in, enjoying the friendly scent. Six queens lay in the nests, quietly chatting with each other. Skykit dropped the mouse in front of Echowing, the dark grey queen. “Sorry,” she apologized. “This was all I could carry.” Echowing purred. “It’s all right, Skykit,” she mewed. “Thank you.” Skykit dipped her head, embarrassed. She looked down at Echowing’s four kits. “Wow, they’re so cute!” She bent down to take a closer look. “What are their names?” “Dewkit, Robinkit, Alderkit, and Shinekit,” mewed Echowing proudly. “They’re half a moon old.” “When are you going to move back to camp?” asked Skykit. “Probably when they’re old enough to eat prey,” Echowing replied. “I’d hate to leave them though. Don’t blame me if I visit every day at sunrise!” Skykit purred in amusement. “Don’t worry, I won’t! I would do the same if I ever have kits.” She stopped for a moment to ponder. Will I ever have kits? It seems so far away… Skykit shook off the thought and turned back to Echowing, who was suckling her kits. hank you." Skykit,"carry."front of Echowing, the dark grey queen. of the clearing, eagerly awaiting the patrol. “You kits are about ready to be apprenticed,” Echowing remarked. “I feel like it’s been moons and moons since your mothers left.” “Yeah,” Skykit agreed. “I’m kinda scared though. Is apprenticeship hard?” “It really depends on the cat,” Echowing replied. “The beginning might be a little difficult, but you’ll catch on fast. I’m sure you’ll be fine.” Skykit stood up a little straighter, suddenly excited. “I hope it comes soon.” “Me too, Skykit,” Echowing mewed. “Me too.” When the day finally came, the large crowd of kits was gathered at the front of the clearing. All their mothers had come and wept over them with pride. Skykit sat beside Whitekit, her eyes shining with excitement. I wonder who my mentor will be? “I hope we’ll be in the same patrol,” whispered Whitekit. “We’d better be,” Skykit whispered back. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.” A few warrior were going through the crowd, rounding up the kits into patrols. “Skykit,” a voice mewed from behind her. Skykit turned around to see a large black tom standing there. He looked down at her warmly. “Come with me.” Glancing worriedly over her shoulder at Whitekit, Skykit followed the tom away from her friend. “Here you are,” the tom announced. “These are the other apprentices in your patrol.” Skykit looked around. There were six other kits sitting in a circle on the ground; three toms and three she-cats. Skykit sat down cautiously as the tom left to speak with the other warriors. She stared at the ground, too nervous to talk to the other kits. Suddenly she heard someone yowl. “''Sneak attack!” A weight dropped on her back and Skykit collapsed to the ground with a squeal. She rolled over to see a dark grey tom kit standing over her. He stepped aside to let her get up and she shook the dust off her pelt. A grey and white she-kit stomped over with a sour look on her face. “Nightkit!” she snapped. “You don’t just jump on random cats you don’t know!” The tom kit flicked his short tail as the she-kit turned to Skykit. “Sorry about that,” she mewed, flustered. “My brother has been trying out his stupid fighting moves on every cat around him. I’m Jadekit, by the way,” she added. “And that’s my dumb brother, Nightkit.” “I’m Skykit,” Skykit replied nervously. “It’s nice to meet you both.” Jadekit was bigger than her by a mouse length, and she had dazzling green eyes that seemed to put Skykit’s to shame. Before Skykit could say anything else, the black tom came back along with two other warriors. “Alright kits,” he announced. “Are you ready to go to camp?” Skykit bristled with excitement as the rest of the kits cheered. ''Finally. Her heart sank when she realized the Whitekit wasn’t in her patrol. Jadekit nudged her. “Look more excited!” she whispered. “No mentor wants a downcast apprentice.” Skykit tried to brighten up, but she was filled with disappointment. I’ll talk to Whitekit later… “Be prepared for some water,” the tom continued. “Because we’ll have to cross a ton of rivers on the way to camp. You probably know that the island is half sunken in the ocean, and ancient DolphinClan cats dug the canals to keep the whole island from flooding.” Skykit nodded slowly. The queens had told them that story numerous times. As the patrol set off towards camp, Skykit looked around in panic. What am I supposed to do without my friends? Chapter 2 Whitepaw cheered with the rest of the clan as newly named Skypaw, along with six other new apprentices, headed down from where they had just received their apprentice names. Whitepaw sighed, wishing that she and Skypaw were in the same patrol. She looked around her, searching for her friends. The camp was huge. Dens lined the side of the large clearing, which was surrounded by water. At the center there was a giant rock where the clan leader, Leafstar, made announcements. It was also where Skypaw and Whitepaw and all the other new apprentices had been standing to receive their apprentice names. “Alright,” mewed Blossomcloud, one of the mentors. “We’ll be splitting into two groups for training. Darkpaw, Reedpaw, Snowpaw, and Splashpaw will go with Dawnsky.” Dawnsky was the other mentor. “And Petalpaw, Minnowpaw, and Whitepaw will go with me.” Whitepaw glanced at the other members of her group. Minnowpaw was a pale grey she-cat with bright blue eyes. She seemed nice enough. Petalpaw was smaller than most of the other apprentices, but her amber eyes were sparked with intelligence. At least Darkpaw isn’t in my group. It wasn’t even sunhigh yet and Whitepaw already hated him. He was annoying and obnoxious, always making bad jokes with the other toms. Whitepaw decided that she would not talk to him. “Are you three ready?” asked Blossomcloud. “We’re going to practice some hunting techniques.” And with that, she led the three eager she-cats into the forest. _____________________________________________________________________________ “Okay, let me get this straight.” Whitepaw flicked her tail anxiously. “First you crouch down and stay low to stalk the bird.” “That’s right,” replied Blossomcloud. “How low?” “Low enough that you back doesn’t stick out of the grass or brush the vines and leaves,” she explained. “But not so low that your belly brushes the ground.” Whitepaw nodded, taking it in. “But what about pouncing? If we pounce too high, we’ll brush the leaves and the bird will likely fly away. But going high helps with our aim, doesn’t it?” “That’s right,” Blossomcloud mewed, nodding. “If you pounce too low, not only does it dull your aim, but you’ll probably end up being loud and clumsy. It’s a good idea to measure out the distances between you and potential noise-makers around you to make sure your pounce won’t disturb any of them. Also, make your pounces quick and accurate so that even if you do make a sound, hopefully you’ll have captured your prey before it can escape.” Whitepaw bit her lip nervously. “But how do I know exactly how much strength to use for the pounce? What if I pounce to far or not far enough?” “Whitepaw,” Petalpaw interrupted. “Can we just start? I think you’ll know when you actually do it.” “Okay…” mewed Whitepaw worriedly. She split up with the other apprentices, with hopes of finding some good prey. Stopping by the shore, Whitepaw glanced into the canal. Almost instantly she saw a huge salmon at the rocky bottom. It’s so big…how am I supposed to catch it? In the corner of her eye, Whitepaw spotted a grey shape darting through the trees. It was Minnowpaw. The grey she-cat was silent yet fast on her paws, and caught a mouse within a few seconds. Whitepaw let out a hiss, not wanting to scare the fish away. Minnowpaw looked over and she gestured with her tail. The she-cat’s eyes widened and she padded over. The salmon swam closer to the surface, unaware of the two apprentices. The leave rustled on the other shore as Petalpaw stepped out of the trees, obviously having spotted the fish too. She exchanged glances with Whitepaw, who nodded. Whitepaw held her paw over the water, waiting for just the right moment. With a swift blow, she knocked the salmon into the air. Petalpaw jumped up to make the killing blow, but slipped. At the last second, she batted the salmon towards Minnowpaw, who leaped across the water, sank her teeth into the fish, and landed with a splash in the canal. Whitepaw’s eyes shone as Minnowpaw swam to the surface, the fish in her jaws. The three apprentices headed back to Blossomcloud, proudly carrying their kill. Their mentor’s eyes widened. “Did you catch this?” she gasped. “We all did,” explained Whitepaw. “Together.” Blossomcloud purred. “I guess I’ve put together a pretty good team here then,” she mewed. “Why don’t you three head back to camp and put your catch in the fresh-kill pile. I’m sure all the warriors will appreciate it.” The three apprentices proudly bounded back to camp, with their prey in tow. “That was awesome!” Petalpaw exclaimed. “We make such a good team!” “We should go hunting together more often,” Whitepaw suggested. “We’ll probably catch more prey that way than if we were on our own.” “I think you’re right,” Minnowpaw agreed. “I thought we’d all be loud and scare away each other’s prey, but I think we can work well in team hunting.” Whitepaw bristled with excitement. They were bound to catch the most prey! Wait till I tell Skypaw! Minnowpaw dropped the salmon into the fresh-kill mile. “Wow, it’s huge!” gasped a tortoiseshell she-cat. “Did you catch it?” “We caught it together,” Minnowpaw mewed, her whiskers twitching. “Great job!” the she-cat praised. “I don’t know if I ever caught a fish that big when I was an apprentice!” Whitepaw exchanged glances with Petalpaw, her eyes shining. “Hey, wanna share something?” Minnowpaw asked. “I think we more than deserve some food.” “Sure!” Petalpaw mewed. “Grab something yummy. We can eat over there.” She flicked her tail to an empty spot in the clearing. Whitepaw looked around. No sign of Skypaw. She must still be training. Whitepaw selected a plump mouse from the pile. I’m so hungry…all that training is really taking its toll. Following Petalpaw and Minnowpaw to the empty spot, she sat down and took a big bite of the mouse. As she ate gratefully, she noticed a patrol entering the camp. There was Skypaw, chatting with a grey and white she-cat. Skypaw spotted her immediately and bounded over. “Whitepaw!” she mewed happily. Then she noticed her friends. “Um, can I join you?” “Sure!” answered Petalpaw. “I’m Petalpaw, and this is Minnowpaw. It’s nice to meet you. Would you like some of this fish?” Skypaw’s whiskered twitched with amusement. “Thanks,” she mewed, sitting down beside Petalpaw. “I’m Skypaw.” “Nice to meet you, Skypaw,” Minnowpaw mewed. “How’s your training going?” “It’s pretty good,” she replied. “We started learning some basic fighting moves today. It’s pretty interesting. What about you guys?” “We went hunting,” Whitepaw reported. “We caught the biggest fish!” Petalpaw put in. “It’s probably longer than my tail!” Laughing, the apprentices ate and chatted, and Whitepaw couldn’t be happier. Category:Fanfiction